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Adam Bate
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James Maddison’s
England call:
Gareth
Southgate’s
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 & '

'There is uncertainty
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about the
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Leicester's James Maddison fully Latest Sky Sports

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Norwich's player of the year in the
Championship in 2017/18, Maddison
took to the Premier League just as
easily - making a big impression at
Leicester in a first ever top-flight
campaign that yielded seven goals and
seven assists. Since making his Premier
League debut, the 22-year-old
playmaker has created more chances in
the competition than anyone else.

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 Nobody has created more chances than
Maddison since joining Leicester

As a result, it is a bit surprising that

there would be any reluctance
whatsoever to fast-track Maddison into
the England team. An unused
substitute against Croatia and Spain
last October, he was left out in the
spring. Gareth Southgate explained his
thinking in candid terms. "I think there
are others in the attacking positions
ahead of him," he said.

Southgate went on to be explicit about

the tactical issue that was holding
Maddison back. "I think he is a No 10
and, at the moment, we have not been
playing with a 10." Even if the England
manager was tempted by a switch of
system, he name-checked Jesse
Lingard, Dele Alli, Marcus Rashford and
Raheem Sterling as preferred
alternatives in the role.

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 off payment of £9.99

It feels odd given that English football

has been lamenting the lack of a

genuine No 10 for as long as many can

remember. It is almost two decades
since World Cup winner George Cohen
bemoaned the absence of anyone who
could "make the play" and through all of
the ups and downs since then the
search has never stopped to find that
type of player.

Maddison's passing for Leicester has

been particularly progressive

Even amid the euphoria of England's

run to the World Cup semi-final under
Southgate last year, this was seen as a
key failing. "We have lots of defensive
midfield players and lots of players who
can dribble, but no one in between,"
John Barnes told Sky Sports. "We just
lacked that composure, the guile and
that know-how," added Gary Neville.

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Southgate found success with a 3-5-2

system that negated the need for a
playmaker, going instead with two
runners either side of a holding
midfielder. When he tweaked the
formation again after the World Cup,
Southgate decided to make use of the
wide forwards available to him - moving
Sterling to his best position and
bringing in Jadon Sancho.

Rodgers hails…
Leicester manager Brendan
Rodgers highlighted James
Maddison's "wonderful
0:56
personality" following his first
England call-up.
Brendan Rodgers has highlighted
Maddison's character as a strength

The player who can get his foot on the

ball in the final third and pick out a pass
still has value but it is a big leap from
Southgate saying he does not use a No
10 to trusting that player at the heart
of his team. Maddison's challenge is to
challenge the thinking. Making the
squad is the first part. Perhaps Brendan

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 squad is the first part. Perhaps Brendan
Rodgers has helped with the second.

Maddison spent much of last season

playing off Jamie Vardy as something

approaching a classic No 10. Rodgers
has found a slightly different role for
him, accommodating his talents just off
the left flank. In his own words, the
Leicester manager has moved him "out
of the floaty position he has been
labelled as" without restricting his
creative instincts.

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VIDEO
Highlights from Leicester's win over
Sheffield United in the Premier League

Against Sheffield United two weeks

ago, Maddison was still allowed to drift
inside to play that gorgeous pass for
Vardy's opener. "I think he's flexible,
that's the beauty of him," said Rodgers.
"I look at Raheem when I had him at
Liverpool, we played him wide, in behind
as a 10, both flanks. Pep Guardiola uses
him in a number of positions - as a

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 him in a number of positions - as a
striker, wide either side, flexible."

Rodgers added: "James is a different

type of player but he is a similar ilk in

terms of his view of the game. You put
him in the team and then, depending on
the structure of the team, you find the
best position for him. Some guys can
play only one role but he has the quality
and the brain to play really well in a
couple of positions."

Maddison's heat map this season shows

that he is now operating on the left

Perhaps Rodgers' use of Maddison in a

different position has persuaded
Southgate that there is a role for him
after all. His heat map this season
shows that he can do his work in that
half-space on the left side of the pitch -
an alternative option in that zone to
the players who like to run in behind
but not necessarily an inferior one.

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 Also See:

Southgate: Youth … Sancho: Pressure o…

'Every kid dreams … Greenwood and Fo…

Maddison's creativity could make him

particularly useful against the packed
defences that are prevalent in
international football. There is still room
for a player who can slow things down
as well as speed them up. And if
Southgate does want to change things
to a 4-2-3-1 mid-game then he now has
a player in the squad who is well suited
to that central role.

Building an international squad is a

balancing act. It is not just about
finding the like-for-like option.
Sometimes it is about finding another
solution, the player who can pick the
lock when the game is not going your
way. Maddison has shown he can do
that for Leicester. Hopefully, he will
soon be given the opportunity to show
that he can do it for England too.

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